Christian Iosifides, an eighth-grade student from West Rocks Middle School, participates in the Peer Outreach Group that meets at Norwalk City Hall every Monday night.

Hour photo/Matthew Vinci

Christian Iosifides, an eighth-grade student from West Rocks Middle School, participates in the Peer Outreach Group that meets at Norwalk City Hall every Monday night.

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Hour Photo/Matthew Vinci

Clive Bey, an eighth-grade student at West Rocks Middle School, gets a lesson in electricity with guest Mary Walsh from Mad Science at the peer outreach group that meets at Norwalk City Hall every Monday for middle schools kids around the city.

NORWALK — "We're going to see if we can pass electricity through your body," said Mary Walsh, wearing a white lab coat, as she instructed Clive Bey, an eighth grader at West Rocks Middle School, to hold in each hand a glass tube filled with neon gas.

Carlos Guzman, co-facilitator with Jason Getner of Norwalk Youth Services' Peer Outreach Program for middle schoolers, switched off the lights, and Walsh touched her static electricity-emitting coil to the gas tube in Bey's left hand, causing the tube to flash and glow like an electric bug zapper. Although an equipment malfunction prevented the tube in Bey's from glowing as intended, the lightning effect was impressive enough to make enthusiastic volunteers of the other fifteen or so students in the room. Soon most of them had taken a turn holding the tube as Walsh pumped it full of static.

According to David Walenczyk, director of Norwalk Youth Services, the Peer Outreach Program -- which currently meets Mondays at 6:30 p.m. on the third floor of City Hall -- has been meeting weekly for more than 20 school years.

"The intention of the program ... is to build pro-social skills for the kids, (and) try to develop some leadership skills," Walenczyk told The Hour.

Each meeting features pizza and an educational demonstration: the program has hosted paranormal investigators, karate instructors, the founder of a video game company and tech demonstrations with robots and 3d printers over the years.

Talana Thomas, 12, a student at Roton Middle School, said her favorite presentation to date was from Animal Embassy, a rescue group that brings live animals into the classroom (including, at one point, a wild wolf, Walenczyk said).

"I like animals and nature, so that's interesting," Thomas told The Hour.

Hazell Robinson, 14, a Roton student in her second year attending Peer Outreach, said the Mad Science demonstrations are her favorites.

"It's pretty cool," Robinson said of the Peer Outreach Program. "It's always diverse, and we always do different things."

According to Walenczyk and Getner, the program's objective is to educate students in an environment that is entertaining enough to hold their attention after a tiring school day.

"We don't want it to feel academic," Getner told The Hour.

"We don't want them coming in and getting a lecture so they're bored," Walenczyk added. "The program is designed by the kids. We bring in those presenters based on their needs and desires."

According to its facilitators, the program often makes a lasting impression on students.

"We've had kids go on to study veterinary medicine because of (Animal Embassy)," for example, said Getner, who has worked at the program for 12 years.

After Mayor Harry Rilling stopped in to pose for a group photo, Walsh continued her demonstration, explaining the physics of static electricity, the behavior of electrons and the watery makeup of the human body, accompanied throughout by hands-on demonstrations.

"You can absolutely taste electricity," Walsh said during her presentation, "although I'm not sure it's something you'd want to taste."